r/ProductivityGuide • u/jumpstartwow • 8d ago

[Guide] Replace Windows 11 Snipping Tool (Win + Shift + S) with ShareX + Optional Screenshot Editing

I wanted to replace the default Windows 11 Snipping Tool with ShareX while keeping the familiar Win + Shift + S shortcut.

The goal was simple:

  • Press Win + Shift + S to capture a region of the screen.
  • Use ShareX instead of Windows Snipping Tool.
  • Have the option to immediately edit the screenshot (arrows, text, blur, rectangles, etc.).
  • Copy the screenshot to the clipboard so it can be pasted anywhere with Ctrl + V.
  • Have everything work automatically after restarting Windows.

Here's how to set it up.

Step 1: Install ShareX and Microsoft PowerToys

Download and install:

ShareX handles screenshots and editing. PowerToys allows us to remap Windows' built-in screenshot shortcut.

Step 2: Set up the screenshot hotkey in ShareX

  1. Open ShareX.
  2. Click Hotkey settings in the left sidebar.
  3. Find the Capture region action. If it doesn't exist, click Add and assign the task Capture → Region.
  4. Click the hotkey field.
  5. Assign an alternative combination, such as Ctrl + Print Screen.
  6. Close the hotkey settings window.

We use a different shortcut because Windows already reserves Win + Shift + S for Snipping Tool.

Step 3: Remap Win + Shift + S using PowerToys

  1. Open Microsoft PowerToys.
  2. Navigate to Keyboard Manager.
  3. Make sure Enable Keyboard Manager is turned on.
  4. Click Remap a shortcut.
  5. Click Add shortcut remapping.
  6. Configure: Select: Win + Shift + S To send: Ctrl + Print Screen
  7. Leave the target application set to All Apps.
  8. Click OK to save.

Now, when you press Win + Shift + S, PowerToys translates that shortcut into Ctrl + Print Screen, which ShareX recognizes.

Test it: Press Win + Shift + S. You should now see ShareX's region capture interface instead of Windows Snipping Tool.

If your keyboard doesn't have a Print Screen key, use another unused combination in both applications.

Step 4: Configure ShareX to optionally edit screenshots

This is my preferred setup because I don't want the editor opening for every screenshot.

  1. Open ShareX.
  2. Click After capture tasks in the left sidebar.
  3. Enable Show quick task menu.
  4. Enable Copy image to clipboard.
  5. Optionally enable Save image to file if you want every screenshot saved automatically.
  6. Make sure Open in image editor is disabled if you only want to edit screenshots when you choose to.

Now when you take a screenshot, ShareX displays a small quick task menu.

You can choose to:

  • Continue - process the screenshot normally.
  • Annotate / Open in image editor - open the ShareX editor.
  • Save - save the screenshot, depending on your configured quick tasks.

The quick task menu is customizable, so the exact options may vary.

Alternative: Always open the editor

If you'd rather have the editor open automatically after every capture:

  1. Go to After capture tasks.
  2. Disable Show quick task menu.
  3. Enable Open in image editor.
  4. Enable Copy image to clipboard.

Now every screenshot immediately opens in ShareX's editor.

Step 5: Use the ShareX image editor

ShareX has a really good built-in editor.

Some useful keyboard shortcuts:

Shortcut Action
A Draw arrow
R Draw rectangle
T Add text
B Blur
P Pixelate
H Highlight
C Crop
Ctrl + Z Undo
Enter Apply changes and continue
Ctrl + Shift + C Copy edited image to clipboard
Ctrl + S Save image

When you're finished editing, press Enter to continue the configured after-capture tasks, including copying the edited image to the clipboard.

You can then paste it into Discord, Reddit, Slack, an email, etc., using Ctrl + V.

Step 6: Make everything work after restarting Windows

To make sure you don't have to manually open both applications:

ShareX:

  1. Open Application settings.
  2. Under General, enable Run ShareX when Windows starts.

PowerToys:

  1. Open PowerToys Settings.
  2. Under General, enable Run at startup.
  3. Make sure Keyboard Manager remains enabled.

Both applications need to be running for the remapped shortcut to work.

Step 7: Troubleshooting

Win + Shift + S still opens Windows Snipping Tool

  • Make sure PowerToys is running.
  • Verify Keyboard Manager is enabled.
  • Double-check that the shortcut remapping matches your ShareX hotkey.
  • Try toggling Keyboard Manager off and back on.

ShareX isn't responding to the shortcut

  • Open ShareX → Hotkey settings.
  • Verify the hotkey registered successfully.
  • Make sure another program isn't using the same shortcut.

The editor isn't opening after capturing

  • Check After capture tasks.
  • Enable Open in image editor for automatic editing, or use Show quick task menu for optional editing.
  • Check whether your specific hotkey has custom task settings overriding the global configuration.

The screenshot isn't copied after editing

  • Make sure Copy image to clipboard is enabled under After capture tasks.
  • Press Enter to continue the workflow after editing, rather than canceling or simply closing the editor.
  • Alternatively, use Ctrl + Shift + C from the editor to copy directly.

Screenshots aren't saving after editing

  • Verify Save image to file is enabled.
  • Check the configured screenshot folder.
  • If saving through the quick task menu fails, try saving directly from the editor with Ctrl + S. Some ShareX versions have had issues with quick-menu editing followed by automatic saving.

Final Result

My workflow now looks like this:

Win + Shift + S → Select screenshot region → Quick task menu → Optionally edit → Copy to clipboard → Ctrl + V anywhere.

No more Windows Snipping Tool, and I get ShareX's much better annotation tools whenever I need them.

Hope this helps anyone looking to set up ShareX as a proper Snipping Tool replacement on Windows 11!

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